This Week in Logistics Information (August 20 – 26)

It appears to me that we’re shedding daylight at a speedy tempo in lately of mid and late August. I perceive the ideas of the shortest day of the yr (winter solstice), longest day of the yr (summer time solstice) and the 2 equinox (equinoxes?), however was not sure of how constantly the change occurred over the yr. I made a decision to google the daylight change in response to the time of yr and got here throughout this text from Scientific American. It’s temporary, informative, and consists of some nice visible depictions. I counsel you test it out. For me on the 45-degree latitude, August 22 by October 22 goes to be the categorical prepare to early sundown. However that is nothing in comparison with the shift for these of you up on the 60^th parallel. And now on to this week’s logistics information:

RETAILERS are reportedly now turning to extra trailer capability to retailer inventories. The objective is to maintain provide chains nimble with the flexibility to maneuver storage capability to varied trailer yards. That is compared to committing to extra warehouse storage capability in a good and extremely risky market. Moreover, the trailer load of stock might be relocated to totally different amenities with out unloading and reloading. It sounds wise sufficient to me, however I’m not sure of how properly these organizations handle the trailer areas and contents of these trailers inside the networks. If they’ve the trailer and yard capability and the flexibility to handle stock correctly, it appears like an affordable tactic.

WAREHOUSE customers signed leases for 37 amenities of 1 million sq. toes or bigger within the U.S. within the first half of this yr, up from 24 within the first half of 2021, in response to DC Velocity‘s write-up on a report from Dallas-based CBRE. The typical warehouse dimension within the 100 largest leases additionally rose, growing to 931,860 sq. toes from 800,149 a yr in the past. “Now we have seen a falloff in leasing by smaller customers – these in 25,000 sq. ft. of much less – possible as a result of financial surroundings. However the largest customers are forging forward, choosing up a lot of the slack,” John Morris, CBRE’s President of Industrial & Logistics within the Americas, stated in a launch. I see this as one other signal of stock administration and planning in a time of heightened provide chain uncertainty. Bigger corporations can make investments for progress whereas absorbing the danger of a downturn. Smaller corporations have much less latitude.

VESSEL quantity will increase anchored off of Savannah and Houston is one signal of a worldwide delivery trade that has moved extra cargo away from the U.S. West Coast. MarineTraffic has tracked a rise within the variety of vessels anchored off the East Coast and Gulf ports. Port of Savannah has 39 vessels at anchor. Within the Gulf, on the Port of Houston, there are 22 cargo ships at anchor. A number of this was the results of shifting freight away from USWC arrivals on account of labor disruption danger. Ocean carriers are canceling sailings as results of U.S. port congestion, and whilst container quantity from China is approach down, U.S. ports proceed to have productiveness points.

AMAZON has put the brakes on the enlargement of its UK checkout-free comfort shops, on account of gross sales falling wanting expectations and match out prices being a number of occasions greater than with a typical location. There’ll nonetheless be a handful of openings this yr at websites the place Amazon had already dedicated to a lease. Amazon’s first checkout-free retailer within the UK opened in March final yr, in Ealing, west London. Since then, it has opened one other 18 shops, predominantly within the capital.

FRENCH supermarkets and fuel stations have a solution to hovering inflation — freezing some costs for the following few months. On Monday, French retail large Carrefour introduced that it will hold costs for greater than 100 important merchandise unchanged for the following 100 days. The listing of things consists of breakfast cereal, espresso, tinned greens, detergent and diapers. That is an fascinating social and enterprise strategy. In my view, it’s possible that these retailers will acquire greater quantity gross sales of those items, diminished margin per unit than they might have achieved in any other case, and probably greater complete gross sales (for items with value elastic demand). The enter value modifications over this time interval will decide the economics results after the moratorium on value will increase (greater value improve with return to regular margins, cheaper price improve with value absorbed by retailer, and many others.) and the following demand modifications to substitutes.

HONDA is reportedly contemplating risk-hedging its provide chain from China. Honda would proceed to maintain its provide chain in China for the home market on the earth’s second-largest financial system, whereas constructing a separate one for markets exterior of China, the Sankei stated. It didn’t say the place it received the data. A Honda spokesperson stated the Sankei report isn’t one thing introduced by the corporate, including it has been engaged on reviewing and risk-hedging its provide chain on the whole.

ATA TRUCK TONNAGE Index decreased 1.1 p.c in July. “Tonnage declined sequentially in July for less than the second time over the last twelve months. Regardless of the dip from June, tonnage stays at elevated ranges and elevated considerably from a yr earlier,” stated ATA Chief Economist Bob Costello. “Whereas tonnage is way stronger than a yr in the past, the month-to-month beneficial properties have moderated because the yr has gone on. The mix of softer consumption of products, residence development falling and slower manufacturing exercise are the principle causes.”